Ron's Weekly Recaps

Last week, Democrats claimed that our State Budget must include their progressive liberal entitlement programs to attract workers & families to our state.   The Democrats' main argument was that Wisconsin's stagnant population growth is due to Wisconsinites fleeing to our neighboring Democrat states of Illinois and Minnesota, because they have more entitlement & welfare programs. The non-partisan Legislative Fiscal Bureau corrected them for their misinformation.   According to data collected from our federal tax returns, most of the people moving here are from Illinois & Minnesota.  However, when Wisconsinites leave, they go to the Republican states of Florida & Texas. 

Let's talk about school choice - a big deal here in Wisconsin. Right now, our tax money gives public schools about $15,000 for each kid. However, Kimberly receives $12, 822, Kaukauna receives $13, 386, Brillion receives $15,787 and Appleton receives $14,893.  But if a family wants to send their kid to a charter or choice school, that money drops to around $9,000. That's a huge difference! Most of us Wisconsinites agree that funding should be fair for all schools, no matter what kind they are.

Special Counsel John Durham’s report found the FBI and Justice Department were biased in their decision to investigate Trump's campaign, acting despite a lack of “substantial” evidence that the Trump campaign colluded with Russia. The report suggests that this represented a "significant shift" from the agencies' reluctance to investigate allegations against Hillary Clinton's campaign. Durham's investigation of the FBI's investigation, called "Crossfire Hurricane,” not maintain "strict fidelity to the law." 

Pandemic Unemployment Assistance funds were so mismanaged during the pandemic, that a Milwaukee street gang stole millions of taxpayer dollars and used it to fund their gang operations and even a murder for hire.

Assembly Republicans have called out the University of Wisconsin Systems (UW) for asking for increased funding while spending $16.8 million dollars on 226 positions related to "diversity, equity, and inclusion" (DEI). Currently, UW-Madison employs 74 of these positions, while UW-Eau Claire and UW-Whitewater each employ 34 of these DEI positions.

Assembly Republicans and local officials have unveiled an ambitious plan to increase state aid to local governments across Wisconsin. Following extensive consultation with constituents and local authorities, the proposed legislation is designed to address the financial challenges faced by rural communities, suburbs, and cities in the coming decade. The focus is on innovation and public safety, ensuring that essential services continue to be maintained and improved.

Carjacking incidents have been on the rise in Wisconsin, particularly in Milwaukee and Madison, causing lawmakers to take notice. Milwaukee has seen the largest jump in stolen car theft rate in the entire country, jumping from a rate of 345.19 in 2020 to 597.83 in 2021 - a 72% increase, according to the National Insurance Crime Bureau (NICB). As Chairman of Judiciary, Ron wants Wisconsin to react to this alarming trend and increase this penalty by passing Assembly Bill 52.

Wisconsin voters have spoken. They want to change how the state's bail system operates. Both of the state's bail reform constitutional amendments passed with overwhelming margins during the recent elections.

On Wednesday, I sat down with Rep. Subeck (D-Madison) and Spectrum 1 News for a roundtable discussion on the two ballot questions that will appear on your April 4th ballot.

This week, the Republican-led Assembly voted and passed a myriad of bills aimed at crime prevention & victim protection. Some of these bills were passed through the Assembly Judiciary Committee, which I chair. I proudly brought these bills to a vote in my committee and many received bipartisan support.